Panel lambasts shotgun coaches, officials

The athletes’ commission of the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) - probing alleged sexual harassment charges against two shotgun shooters - has severely castigated one of the coaches who accompanied the team to Suhl, Germany, last month, saying that “he was hardly able to take charge of his responsibilities”.

A day after HT carried the report that one of the shooters had been recommended for a ban of one year, and another for six months, NRAI president Raninder Singh said, the “commission’s report will be implemented in full and there will be no dilution.”

The five-member commission, in its report - a copy of which is with HT -, says, “Coach UU (names have been withheld in the report) was totally unaware of the events around him and gave the impression that he was hardly able to take charge of his responsibilities as coach of a junior team.”

HT has reliably learnt that one of the coaches went to Suhl with his wife and did not return with the team, which is the norm.

Raninder conceded that such a thing had happened, and added that “shortcomings with the official had been taken cognizance of and we will now have a system of appraisal in place where it will be ensured that such people don’t accompany the teams.”

Interestingly, no disciplinary action has been recommended against the manager who accompanied the team.

The report, though, says that, “the coaches and officials who accompanied the shotgun team have been incapable of handling shooter’s issues. They have been unable to solve disciplinary matters.”

Among other things which the main accused did during the tour as corroborated by fellow shooters who deposed before the commission, included “harassing the girl WW by their silly tirade of insults and actions throughout the trip, using obscene language and being foul mouthed, repeatedly calling the girl ‘Stinky Pinky’, defying coach TT’s order not to sit behind WW during her match, creating a situation for WW more than a couple of times, where she felt bullied and mentally harassed, knowingly instigating WW time and again and affecting her concentration, and (showing) a short glimpse of pornography on TV while channel surfing…these channels are common during late nights in Germany”

The report further accused the two boys YY and ZZ of mentally harassing and others too, which “eventually hampered their performances...this behaviour and attitude is unacceptable for an international shooter. Three other boys seem to have abetted the wrongdoings of the two main accused.”

However, despite such serious charges, the dichotomy of the report stood out in stark contrast, as the harassed girl too has been “given a strong-worded warning by NRAI to improve her conduct and behaviour with all her co-shooters and maintain cordial relations with one and all.”

Given the circumstances, where she was forced to call her brother - who stays in Germany - for help, it is indeed strange that she too finds herself being penalised.